Invasive plants and weeds are difficult and costly to control.
What’s the best way to stay ahead?
The solution is what some land managers call Early Detection, Rapid Response or EDRR for short. EDRR means finding the plant early – while it’s small and before it goes to seed – and destroying it right away. Imagine pulling a few weeds by hand, versus boom-spraying hundreds of acres. That’s EDRR.
In my job as a land manager, EDRR means a few things.
First, I’m always paying attention to what’s growing. If I see something new, I learn its name as soon as I can. Generally, my alarm bells go off whenever I see something new that looks happy. You know the plants – they’re twice as large as the other ones; sometimes they have prettier flowers. They may be loaded with fruits or seeds. They just look happier somehow. When I see that, I think, “well, that’s different,” or, “I’ve never noticed that before,” and so I look it up; often using a phone app called iNaturalist.
If you’re not familiar, iNaturalist is an app for smartphones that can identify plants and animals. It’s free, and it’s easy to use. Simply download iNaturalist on your phone, take a few pictures of your problem plant (or critter for that matter), and the app will automatically identify it for you. Plus, it will keep a record of the observation – the name, date, and location – which comes in handy when you forget something later. If you need help using the app, watch a tutorial or attend our free program, Conservation at Your Fingertips, where you can learn in person
Second, I always keep gloves, herbicide, and flagging tape in my work truck. Depending on the size of the problem, I’ll either hand-pull the plant (for smaller problems), spray it (for bigger problems), or flag it for later (for large problems). I generally follow a 15-minute rule – if I can solve this problem in 15 minutes, it’s worth doing it now. If it takes longer than 15 minutes, I think about scheduling a time to do it. As for quick spray-jobs, store-bought, pre-mixed herbicide is convenient and easy to keep in the truck. You may pay a little extra for the convenience, but it will save you in the long run. I use a two-gallon sprayer.
Third, I’m intentional about inspecting areas regularly. All trails and fence lines are inspected at least a few times a year, with more inspections in the summer and fall, when things are actively growing and seeding. (Trails and fences typically have the most weeds). Inside of woodland areas, I try to walk a few lines through them at least once a year. (These areas usually have fewer weeds).
Finally, for me, EDRR means that I break large problems into smaller, early detection, rapid response parts. For example, I may ask, where on my property is this big-problem actually a new arrival? Maybe a weed is common on the front 40 acres, but not the back 40 acres. Well, that makes it a new arrival on the back 40, and that’s where I focus my efforts.
And that’s the basic idea with EDRR. If you can get into the habitat of practicing EDRR on your own property, it will save you a lot of time and money, and will help keep your land productive and beautiful.
For more information about EDRR, try an internet search using key words such as “Florida” and “EDRR.”
